I am relying mainly upon my intuition and a heartfelt empathy as I select and humbly offer this mantra. Forgive me if I unwittingly offend in any way. After today, for nine days I will not post anything on this blog as I will be keeping vigil for my sister. You are welcome to join me.

I refuse to believe that our sister has anything but love in her heart for the land of her birth and all the souls dwelling within. I refuse to believe that the confusion which appears to be relentlessly assailing her office can continue to do so if we stand wherever we are and extend our hearts and hands to her, not as a gauntlet to deliver blows as she passes, but as a protective phalanx of her brothers and sisters of all creeds and races, who will reserve a space within the shelter of our benediction so that she can, without the debilitating stress of negative vibrations and voices, reflect upon the task which she has accepted on our behalf and on how she should proceed from here.

I am not saying that our concerns are foolish or unfounded or that we should ever make the mistake again of remaining silent in the face of injustice. I also, have experienced and expressed my own dismay, perhaps amplified and made harder to bear because of my distance from my homeland and its mitigating comforts. But my spirit continues to be troubled also because I cannot say with honesty that I have given her every opportunity to succeed when I continue to bombard her only with negative energy, when I continue to feed the negative forces that may be the only obstacles between where we stand now and our nation's renewal which it is our right to demand and to be given the chance to work towards.

Over the next nine days especially I invite everyone who wants the best for Trinidad and Tobago and their countrymen, the children with us and those yet unborn, the beautiful land and all the creatures that swim, fly and walk, upon, above and around it, to ask whatever you regard as your source of life and spiritual strength to touch our sister, to bring her the clarity of righteous wisdom and to bring to each one of us the same.

It does not matter what religion you belong to or if you belong to none. In our lifetimes we have all been warmed by, if not blossomed under, the encouragement and consolation of the simple blessings of those who've wished us well.

Bless and protect our sister.
Let those who can assist, draw closer to her
Let those who cannot, depart.
Give her the discernment and trust to recognise and admit true patriots.
Remove from her space the negative influences both near and far,
emanating from the hurts of the past and the present,
from those who are against her
and from some of those who claim to be for her
and everything which distracts us all from achieving the higher destiny
which many still hope will be hers and this nation's.

After these nine days, I will say no more on this matter, either for or against. In time, an even wiser Trinidad and Tobago will make its decision and if that decision is made with love for ALL, I am confident that it will be the right one.

Rishis have selected the words of various Mantras and arranged them in such a way that they not only convey some meaning but their chanting also creates specific energies. Gayatri is a mantra which inspires righteous wisdom. It means that the Almighty God may illuminate our intellect, which may lead us on the righteous path. This is the most important prayer. All the problems of a person are solved if he is endowed with righteous wisdom. Having far-sighted wisdom, a man is neither entangled in avoidable calamity nor does he tread a wrong path. A wise man intuitively finds solutions to his problems. Those who lack this clear-sightedness find themselves always facing problems and ever living from crisis it crises. The worship of Gayatri mantra bestows the boon of righteous wisdom. The teachings of and the powers incorporated in Gayatri mantra fulfil this purpose. Righteous wisdom starts emerging as soon as Jap of this mantra is taken up as a Sadhana.Om bhurbhuvah swah tatsaviturvarenyam bhargo devasya dhimahi dhiyo yo nah prachodayatOm! Brahma or Almighty God Bhuh embodiment of vital spiritual energy (Pran)bhuvah destroyer of sufferings swah embodiment of happiness tat that savituh bright, luminous like the Sunvarenyam best, most exaltedbhargo destroyer of sinsdevasya divine dhimahi may imbibe dhiyo intellectyo who nah our prachodayat may inspire.

In short it is a prayer to the Almighty Supreme God, the Creator of entire cosmos, the essence of our life existence, who removes all our pains and sufferings and grants happiness beseeching His divine grace to imbibe within us His Divinity and Brilliance which may purify us and guide our righteous wisdom on the right path.

A man gets imbued with divine qualities contemplating and meditating on this meaning of Gayatri. One should contemplate on these feelings daily and regularly. Three prayer-filled meditations are given here which should be silently recited and projected on the mental screen through imagination.

1. “The Almighty God, who is known as pranav pervades all the three Lokas, viz, Bhooha-lok, Bhuvaha-lok and Swaha-lok. He is Omnipresent. The cosmos is physical manifestation of God who pervades its each and every particle. I am seeing Him everywhere. I would always refrain from evil thoughts and evil deeds and perform true worship of God by extending cooperation in promoting happiness, peace and beauty in this universe which is His creation”.

2. “This (tat) God is extremely bright (savitur), most exalted (varenyam), devoid of sin (bhargo) and divine (devasya). I visualise this Divinity within me, in my soul. By such contemplation, I am becoming illumined, virtues are growing in all the layers of my being. I am being saturated with these virtues, these characteristics, of God.”

3. “That God may inspire (prachodayat) our (naha) intellect, wisdom (dhiyo) and lead us on righteous path. May our intellect, the intellects of our family members and of all of us, be purified and may He lead us on the righteous path. On getting righteous wisdom, which is the greatest achievement and is the source of all the happiness in this world, we may be able to enjoy celestial bliss in this life and make our human life purposeful.”

We should contemplate and meditate on these three prayer-filled meditations slowly and pausing for a moment on each word and an imaginary picture of that word should be drawn in the mind.

While contemplating upon the first meditation, it should be imagined that God pervades all the three Lokas, the earth, heaven and Patal (nethermost world). God should be visualised pervading these Lokas in the form of light, heat and electricity, life force (Pran) etc. This vast universe is the living physical image of God. The Sadhak should try to visualise in his imagination a glimpse of the All-pervading Omni-present God just as was given to Arjun by Lord Krishna. He should imagine that God is all around him and he is sitting in God’s lap. It should be pondered how evil thoughts and evil actions could remain lodged in his mind and body in the presence of the Omni-potent Divinity. He should imagine that each and every manifestation of this universal Godhead is adorable and that well being lies in selfless service of this universe, this vast humanity and in beautifying God’s creation.

While reflecting on the second meditation, one should imagine the extremely bright and luminous, supremely exalted God adorned with all divine qualities, seated on the throne of Sadhak’s heart. God can be also visualised in the form of Virat Purush. (2) Ram, Krishna, Vishnu, Gayatri, Sarsvati etc. and (3) in the flame of a lamp. God can be meditated upon in male or in mother’s form according to one’s own sentiments. God is female as well as male. Gayatri Sadhaks prefer to meditate on the Almighty God in the form of Gayatri Mata. Brilliance, supreme excellence, utmost piety, purity and divine righteousness should be visualised in the beautiful image of Gayatri Mata. It should be imagined that such a beautiful and virtuous divine power permanently dwells in the sadhak’s heart and permeates all the pores of his body.

While thinking on the third meditation, it should be felt that the divine power of Gayatri has caught the intellect and feelings of our head and heart and is guiding them on the path of righteousness. We are pure, concerted and enthusiastic and are getting attained to move in the direction of righteousness with the grace of Gayatri Mata.

These three kinds of prayer filled meditations embodied in Gayatri are symbolic of Gyan-yog, Bhakti-yog and karma-yog. In fact, contemplation of the meaning of Gayatri amounts to immersion in the Triveni of these three kinds of yog. By such contemplation, the meaning of Gayatri Mantra is fully assimilated in the heart of the Sadhak. The result is that in a short time his mind gets diverted from evil thoughts and evil deeds and he starts taking enthusiastic joy in righteous thinking and good actions. Howsoever little this tendency may be in the beginning it is almost certain that if the practice persists, the inner-self of the Sadhak becomes more and more awakened and the ultimate aim of life draws closer and closer. SOURCE

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"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so.

Blessed is all of creation
Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Lord, Please walk beside me through this day. Clear the heavy air with the lightness of Your Presence. Guide my hands and steady my heart that I may give comfort when I cannot give hope, that I may give relief when I do not have a cure, and that I may radiate Your healing peace when the limits of science, time, and the human body overwhelm us all.Amen